Majestic back in Sydney

[resordanis]

59 minutes ago, cheznandy said:

Funny Cheryle, sorry TommyH this has really gone off topic, but once on a cruise on the Emerald Princess, Andy and I had just come from the pool area, shorts, tshirts thongs etc. Thought we would wander past the aft restaurant to see what was on the menu tonight before we got back to our cabin.

All the 5pm diners were lined up on the stairs as they do at 4.30pm, one elderly gent pushed his way through to tell us in a loud voice that we won't get into the dining room dressed like that, we would have to go to the buffet haha!! Too funny, some people just can't help themselves.

So true! On his particular cruise, this person kept saying to me loudly that he and his wife were  Diamond. I was so shocked by the rudeness. I didn’t mentioned that I was Diamond Plus, but should have!  I was actually only trying to look at the new Concierge’s name, not join a queue . If we hadn’t done the previous cruise to NZ, I probably wouldn’t have noticed it, but then many commented on the same. Never went near the buffet either, thats when you see the people on walkers actually walk. . Gee, I hope my next 5 day domestic cruise is not the same😩😩😩😩

Anyway, no more comments from me on this subject.

[arxcards]

On 2/27/2023 at 6:02 AM, Galesa said:

Quite frankly I'm not really surprised. As a 70 year old I was shocked at how old and quite frail some of the passengers were on our just completed MP cruise. 

Just dropped back here as a reference to old and frail. The guy in question for our medivac was quoted as old, but I don't know how frail. An afternoon in a cruise buffet could give anyone a stroke if their clock was ticking for it. 

 

From the latter comments, yes, domestic cruising attracts an older audience, as well as those with disabilities/carers. My understanding is the carer can claim free travel, but only for domestic. This comment comes from the previous Majestic cruise that was out to Fiji & back.

 

Probably the same for the current Majestic one, but not much different to 15 years ago. Some old and cranky and some not so old and cranky. I laughed as Barb had a bit of a rant getting a coffee at International Cafe on the last night. To heavily paraphrase, over three nights it was somewhat difficult for them to make a lactose free caramel latte. From the order slip, they wouldn't notice the caramel and would also pour regular milk. The coffee is horrible by the way, as they have increased the takeaway cup size, but still only single shot. 

 

Since October, the service in a lot of areas has slipped with lots of inexperienced crew replacing those coming off contract. Many are coming off contact early with expiring US visas. As an example, nice young bloke running Good Spirits bar but is currently doing his first cruise as a barman at sea. All enough to make one grumpy.

[cheznandy]

9 minutes ago, resordanis said:

 Never went near the buffet either, thats when you see the people on walkers actually walk. 

🤣🤣

Ok, back on topic, the Majestic.......I'm gonna jinx myself for rude people in a couple of days.

Geoff, is the Hollywood Sanctuary area still free?

[cheznandy]

3 minutes ago, arxcards said:

 All enough to make one grumpy.

Yeah, I get that Geoff, especially when Princess have upped their fares and their drinks! You would at least want decent service and knowledgeable staff.

[arxcards]

11 minutes ago, resordanis said:

So true! On his particular cruise, this person kept saying to me loudly that he and his wife were  Diamond. I was so shocked by the rudeness. I didn’t mentioned that I was Diamond Plus, but should have!  I was actually only trying to look at the new Concierge’s name, not join a queue . If we hadn’t done the previous cruise to NZ, I probably wouldn’t have noticed it, but then many commented on the same. Never went near the buffet either, thats when you see the people on walkers actually walk. . Gee, I hope my next 5 day domestic cruise is not the same😩😩😩😩

Anyway, no more comments from me on this subject.

I just laugh at them. The same on Princess, where I would tell them there is a difference between elite and elitest, in the nicest possible way. 😂

[arxcards]

7 minutes ago, cheznandy said:

🤣🤣

Ok, back on topic, the Majestic.......I'm gonna jinx myself for rude people in a couple of days.

Geoff, is the Hollywood Sanctuary area still free?

Don't know Chez. Walked through in October and didn't pause long enough to think it was worth going back. I think it is still free, but not sure about the enclosed cabanas. 

[arxcards]

16 minutes ago, cheznandy said:

Yeah, I get that Geoff, especially when Princess have upped their fares and their drinks! You would at least want decent service and knowledgeable staff.

Everything is going up, so that doesn't bug me much. You get to know what a base line standard is for Princess, and Majestic is starting to test the limits in a couple of areas. They are trying but need more experience.

[TommyH2006]

1 hour ago, cheznandy said:

🤣🤣

Ok, back on topic, the Majestic.......I'm gonna jinx myself for rude people in a couple of days.

Geoff, is the Hollywood Sanctuary area still free?

Yes the Hollywood Conservatory is still free. Including the cabanas. You might need to get there at 6.00a.m. to get one though!!! 😂

[resordanis]

55 minutes ago, arxcards said:

Don't know Chez. Walked through in October and didn't pause long enough to think it was worth going back. I think it is still free, but not sure about the enclosed cabanas. 

Definitely free Chez, but get there early for a Cabana. The chair hogs must sleep there. We went right to the front,  to table and chairs and it was very pleasant!

[NSWP]

1 hour ago, cheznandy said:

🤣🤣

Ok, back on topic, the Majestic.......I'm gonna jinx myself for rude people in a couple of days.

Geoff, is the Hollywood Sanctuary area still free?

Chez, pity you had to hand in your 'appointments', they might have come in useful to combat the super old angry/rude pax on Majestic.🤣

 

Enjoy your adventure.

[cheznandy]

10 minutes ago, NSWP said:

Chez, pity you had to hand in your 'appointments', they might have come in useful to combat the super old angry/rude pax on Majestic.🤣

 

Enjoy your adventure.

Hey Les, hope you are doing ok🥰

I am not on Majestic anytime soon, been there done that twice!! No future Princess cruises booked.

Short ones for us ATM in this climate of cruising, just to get away. Hope you can get back on soon!

[bazzaw]

2 hours ago, arxcards said:

I just laugh at them. The same on Princess, where I would tell them there is a difference between elite and elitest, in the nicest possible way. 😂

I had only been on Princess once when I became Elite. Elite on Princess is like Cattle class anywhere else. 

[arxcards]

14 minutes ago, bazzaw said:

I had only been on Princess once when I became Elite. Elite on Princess is like Cattle class anywhere else. 

Anyone who believes that whatever upper tier makes them a more important cruiser matches what is excreted from cattle class. Never had much time for those "don't you know who I am" cruisers, regardless of the brand they sail on.

[cheznandy]

49 minutes ago, arxcards said:

Anyone who believes that whatever upper tier makes them a more important cruiser matches what is excreted from cattle class. Never had much time for those "don't you know who I am" cruisers, regardless of the brand they sail on.

The only thing of value to us on Princess now as Elite is the mini bar setup and priority tendering.

No internet and no "cheaper" drinks at the Elite/Platinum lounge.....if they still have it.

Is that right Geoff? Haven't cruised Princess since 2020.

We are not Elite/Diamond or what ever on any other line, we don't need dress up's, or special dinners/drink party's, couldn't think of anything worse than sitting with Officers for a lunch.

Just a nice mid size ship, good dining choices included, an aft deck pool, nice free adults only area and some bloody reasonably priced drinks, don't want much!!

[Aus Traveller]

51 minutes ago, cheznandy said:

The only thing of value to us on Princess now as Elite is the mini bar setup and priority tendering.

No internet and no "cheaper" drinks at the Elite/Platinum lounge.....if they still have it.

Is that right Geoff? Haven't cruised Princess since 2020.

We are not Elite/Diamond or what ever on any other line, we don't need dress up's, or special dinners/drink party's, couldn't think of anything worse than sitting with Officers for a lunch.

Just a nice mid size ship, good dining choices included, an aft deck pool, nice free adults only area and some bloody reasonably priced drinks, don't want much!!

They still have the Elite/Platinum lounge every evening. We have only been once and that was to try it out. BTW, the Captain's Lunch is superb but since cruising re-started after COVID, the Captain and his officers make an appearance but don't host the tables. The Captain does 'work the room' by talking to everyone.

[resordanis]

1 hour ago, cheznandy said:

The only thing of value to us on Princess now as Elite is the mini bar setup and priority tendering.

No internet and no "cheaper" drinks at the Elite/Platinum lounge.....if they still have it.

Is that right Geoff? Haven't cruised Princess since 2020.

We are not Elite/Diamond or what ever on any other line, we don't need dress up's, or special dinners/drink party's, couldn't think of anything worse than sitting with Officers for a lunch.

Just a nice mid size ship, good dining choices included, an aft deck pool, nice free adults only area and some bloody reasonably priced drinks, don't want much!!

Chez, Sounds good and definitely what we would like, but everything these days is designed to get as much money as possible from the passengers. FYI we went to Elite Lounge once, no special priced drinks for us but everyone was after the food, which we didn’t need. When you find a ship with what you would like, keep me in mind please.

[NSWP]

4 hours ago, cheznandy said:

Hey Les, hope you are doing ok🥰

I am not on Majestic anytime soon, been there done that twice!! No future Princess cruises booked.

Short ones for us ATM in this climate of cruising, just to get away. Hope you can get back on soon!

Hi Chez, I am battling on, but not well.  I meant to say Carnival Luminosa, all the domestic cruises have an aged passenger compliment.🤓  Enjoy the adventure.

[CU64]

8 hours ago, resordanis said:

One of our three cruises over November/December the crowd all seemed to be super angry.Everyone that had done B2B2B’s were commenting.  So much so, that I just went to look at something one day and several people yelled at me to get in line, what line I asked and I was only glancing!When we discussed it later we wondered whether it was because there were no passports required on this cruise meaning the age demographics were higher. Just asking?????

Lockdowns lockdowns. Isolated, controlled people by the govt are very unhappy 

[arxcards]

16 hours ago, cheznandy said:

The only thing of value to us on Princess now as Elite is the mini bar setup and priority tendering.

No internet and no "cheaper" drinks at the Elite/Platinum lounge.....if they still have it.

Is that right Geoff? Haven't cruised Princess since 2020.

We are not Elite/Diamond or what ever on any other line, we don't need dress up's, or special dinners/drink party's, couldn't think of anything worse than sitting with Officers for a lunch.

Just a nice mid size ship, good dining choices included, an aft deck pool, nice free adults only area and some bloody reasonably priced drinks, don't want much!!

If we are on a longer one or overseas, the laundry & priority tendering are the main attractions for us. Yes, no free minutes of internet, but discounted daily or whole of cruise packages. The lounge exists, but we rarely use it, and we skip the lunches & wine tastings. We are building a stash of mini spirit bottles. Not much point drinking them in cabin when you have a drinks package that delivers to your room.

 

Loyalty programs are designed to lock you in to a brand, and being disloyal gives you much more choice.

[arxcards]

Apart from the turnover of staff, there are a couple of things I noticed to have changed since our October cruise.

- In October, we received a nice mini travel pack, not this time.

- In October, we were able to stream Foxtel to our device in cabin, this time it said no internet was available when trying to connect. This could be a Foxtel block, as the ship is not part of the Australian broadcast area they are licensed to stream to. It could also be a port block on the ship's internet.

- I haven't noticed this before when ordering from the app as it is really fine print. Maybe it is just a generic part of the app that applies away from Australia, but I wonder if they have now started charging a "delivery fee" of sorts for alcohol??

 

[Aus Traveller]

9 minutes ago, arxcards said:

Apart from the turnover of staff, there are a couple of things I noticed to have changed since our October cruise.

- In October, we received a nice mini travel pack, not this time.

- In October, we were able to stream Foxtel to our device in cabin, this time it said no internet was available when trying to connect. This could be a Foxtel block, as the ship is not part of the Australian broadcast area they are licensed to stream to. It could also be a port block on the ship's internet.

- I haven't noticed this before when ordering from the app as it is really fine print. Maybe it is just a generic part of the app that applies away from Australia, but I wonder if they have now started charging a "delivery fee" of sorts for alcohol??

 

My guess is that the reference to 18% gratuity is something that doesn't apply in Australia.